For Faculty

For Faculty

A core mission of the International Business Center is to support the international development of faculty. It is critical for faculty of all disciplines, especially business, to be well versed in the international implications of their work. The IBC supports faculty development initiatives that give professors the opportunity to study around the globe, to develop globally relevant courses, and to learn foreign languages.

From 1989 - 2014, the International Business Center’s faculty research grant program has provided funding to Katz and CBA faculty for the purpose of defraying the incremental costs incurred in connection with international research projects.

Until 2014, the International Business Center provided resources to help Pitt Business professors add international components to their courses. The IBC believes that every subject area can be taught from an international perspective without altering the subject's fundamental objectives. To this end, the IBC offerred support in the following ways:

Course Development Grants were available to support faculty at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral levels. Faculty added international perspective to courses, collaborated across disciplines, and utilized communications technology to host guest speakers via remote technology.

Business Language Course Development Grants. The IBC supported funding for courses like the Le Francais En Affaires, which featured an international approach to the language and covered business language, and where applicable, covered a variety of countries in which the language is spoken.

About Course Development Grants

The International Business Center is pleased to offer funding opportunities to Katz faculty under its international course development grants program. Courses at both the graduate and undergraduate levels are eligible for support. The IBC is particularly interested in funding course development grants related to CBA Global Management major, Katz's Global Management Certificate, and for courses that strengthen the MBA-MIB joint degree. Additionally, the IBC encourages internationalization of courses through guest speakers, including international speakers who join a class via technology.

Group and joint faculty proposals, as well as those from individuals, are encouraged. If the IBC funds projects that introduces an international dimension in core courses, then the faculty member involved must share the results with other faculty who regularly teach sections of the same courses. The premise of this program is that most courses can be taught from an international perspective without altering the course's fundamental objectives.

Funds may be requested to support a variety of activities, including but not limited to:

Payments to graduate students for assistance in any aspect of case or materials development

Travel necessitated by such efforts

The International Business Center offers faculty development programs to professors within Katz, the greater University of Pittsburgh community, and universities and community colleges outside of Pitt.

Professional Development Workshops for Faculty and Teachers. The IBC offers workshops on a variety of international topics. The workshops are announced in the events section of this Web site.

Language Study may be available for Katz faculty and staff in programs tailored to individual needs. In conjunction with the University's language departments, the IBC supports instruction in many languages. Instruction can be offered as individual tutoring, small group tutoring, or group classes. Please contact the IBC for more information.

The IBC helps to support Pitt professors who teach foreign languages in the following ways:

Professional Development Workshops for Faculty. The IBC can help language faculty to find professional development opportunities both at the University of Pittsburgh as well as regionally and nationally. For example, the Summer Institute for Learning a Second Language for Business Communication, hosted by Penn Lauder, teaches language educators how to design curricula for business communication, integrate business fundamentals, and understand second-language pedagogy.

Professional Development Workshops for Faculty and Teachers. The IBC joins the area studies centers at the University Center for International studies for workshops on varying international topics. The workshops are announced in the events section of this Web site.